


Little Moonshine

by aizawa_zawa



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged up characters, Harry Potter References, M/M, Magic, Tom & Jerry, a little angsty, little kid, some humor & fluff, spells, time limit, twin magicians
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 09:01:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14973731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aizawa_zawa/pseuds/aizawa_zawa
Summary: Tsukishima didn't believe in magic, but when Kuroo drags him to a show, he doesn't expect to end up on the stage with two magical twins, scared for his life.Tsukishima gets volunteered for a magic trick he does NOT enjoy.





	Little Moonshine

**Author's Note:**

> The idea of Tsukki being changed into a kid just came to me one day & I had to write it. But honestly, this story ran away from me lol, I didn't exactly plan out what I wanted to write. I just sat & whatever came out was it. So, this is the turnout & I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> A very HUGE thank you to Akaashi's Bitch, the lovely Miranda, for being my beta for this fic! I love you sm. Thank you for helping me w/ everything! ❤

“You know I hate crowded places.”

“Awe, come on Tsukki! It’s not that bad.”

“Yes, it is. Everyone here is horrible.”

“Even me?”

“ _Especially_ you.”

Kuroo throws his head back and cackles. To anyone else, Tsukishima’s comment might seem unnecessary and even come off as rude, but Kuroo knows him. Has known him for years now. He knows by the softness in Tsukishima’s golden eyes, the way he’s holding tightly onto the belt loops of Kuroo’s jeans, that he doesn’t mean what he said, but at the same time, he does. They’ve been together for a long time and know how to read between the lines. Kuroo is Tsukishima’s favorite person.

As they walk down the packed sidewalk, Tsukishima notices a few paces ahead a woman with her bratty child walking the opposite direction right across from him. The child is trying to get out of her mother’s grasp while the mother scolds her, face set in a scowl.

“Poor kid, that must be embarrassing.” Kuroo mentions. He steps aside so that he and Tsukishima can make room, but the latter doesn’t budge. “Seriously, Tsukki?”

Tsukishima raises his chin and narrows his eyes at the whiny child, then at the angry woman, _you better move aside because_ I’m _not_. The woman makes eye contact with him, both coldly staring at each other. Tsukishima sets his jaw, _Move aside_. The woman’s nose flares, and she continues to glare with beady eyes. She and her bratty child scurry by and the woman shoulders him, not even apologizing or at least saying excuse me to make her way through.

Tsukishima grits his teeth, turning to stare daggers at the woman, and ready to throw an insult.

“ _Don_ _’t_.” Kuroo warns.

Tsukishima huffs and faces forward again. “Damn witch could’ve said something at least.”

“ _Or_ you could have moved.”

“Not likely.”

Kuroo sighs. “You need to not be such an ass sometimes. Whatever, just forget it. Come on, don’t let that ruin our day. I don’t wanna be late.”

“Of course, _your majesty_.” Tsukishima says sarcastically.

Kuroo grins. “I like that. _Your majesty_. Hmm, maybe we should role-play that someday.”

Tsukishima rolls his eyes. “No thanks. You can role-play with Kageyama or Oikawa.”

Kuroo pouts. “But I want _you_.”

Tsukishima waves him off. “Let’s hurry along. The sooner we go to that magic show you wanna see, the sooner we can get home.”

One of the main parks in the city is holding a magic show this weekend. Apparently, the magicians are some famous twin sisters, from who knows where, that are travelers. They visit a different country every year, and this year they decided to appear in Japan. When Kuroo saw the flier on his way home from work, he took a picture, ran to the train station, waited impatiently for the train to arrive at his stop, then ran all the way home to Tsukishima. He barged in the front door like a madman, untamed hair even more askew, breathing heavily, waving his phone around like a lunatic. Eyes wide, he screams, “Tsukki, magicians are coming! Magicians!”

During the following weeks, Kuroo kept trying magic tricks on Tsukishima, which he failed miserably. So many eggs were sacrificed, Kuroo had to constantly play 52 pickup, and many coins were lost. Even though Kuroo was terrible at magic, Tsukishima still encouraged him to try until he got the trick right. Kuroo never did, but Tsukishima loved watching him nonetheless because every time Kuroo was hopeful that he’d finally get a trick right.

When Kuroo and Tsukishima arrive at the park, it’s fairly packed and the admission line is a little long.

“Maybe we should’ve left earlier.” Tsukishima says. He honestly couldn’t care less about the magic show, but Kuroo’s excited and has been waiting for weeks. He feels kind of bad that they couldn’t arrive earlier so that his boyfriend could get a good seat and view. If it makes Kuroo happy, Tsukishima will be there to support him.

There’s chain-link fencing around the park, benches and chairs are set in rows and two columns, and the medium-sized stage is lit up. The whole set up is simple. There isn’t a tent or many decorations, but everything is colored in black and purple. The benches and chairs have black drapes, the curtains on the stage are a deep purple, the background of the stage is a shimmery black curtain with a purple neon sign hanging in the middle that says, “TRICKSTER SISTERS”. The sun has already set, but the sky is still in dark blue, orange, and pink colors.

Tsukishima wonders why the magicians would hold their show in a park. Yes, the park is one of the biggest ones in the city, but if the magicians are so famous, then why didn’t they just have their show at an actual venue?

“It’s okay,” Kuroo smiles. “It’s still not as full. Besides, the line’s actually moving.”

It takes about ten more minutes for their turn to pay, well, Kuroo pays. Instead of tickets, they get stamps on their hands, which instantly fades into their skin, and are let in through the gate. Kuroo takes hold of Tsukishima’s hand and they make their way through the now growing crowd. Since many of the visitors here are families, they’re trying to find spaces big enough for everyone to sit together or at least nearby each other. It’s a huge advantage that Tsukishima and Kuroo are tall because the former easily spots two open seats a little closer to the front. The seats are at the end of the fourth row from the stage, and they’re luckily right next to the aisle so they have a clear view of the stage. Plus, if Tsukishima has to go to the bathroom, or possibly run away, he doesn’t need to worry about tripping on people’s feet. The only person he has to pass by is Kuroo, who enjoys viewing the blond’s ass.

“So what kind of magic tricks do these twin magicians do?” Tsukishima asks.

“Awesome things, like cutting each other in half, pulling bunnies out of hats, turning papers into doves, all that cool shit.”

Tsukishima raises a single brow. “Isn’t that kiddish? And basic? And unoriginal? By your excitement, I thought they were like Hermione Granger and Luna Lovegood. Or Bellatrix Lestrange.”

“Bellatrix is an evil witch, Tsukki.”

“She’s still cool.”

Kuroo chuckles. “Whatever, but you can’t go wrong with performing classic magic tricks. At every show they hold, towards the end, they do one _mind blowing_ trick. They’ve turned a man into a fox, made a little girl fly, made it snow during the summer. It’s always different, so who knows what they’ll do today.” He shakes with excitement and does a little shimmy dance in his seat.

“How do you know that’s all true?” Tsukishima questions. “Is there footage?”

Kuroo shakes his head. “They don’t allow people to record or take pictures. One time, a man was recording and one of the twins turned his phone into jello. And I read all this online.” He giggles at the jello part, eyes shining.

Tsukishima just sighs. Kuroo’s so happy and he doesn’t have the heart to tell him that it’s all fake. If people aren’t allowed to record or take pictures, then it’s because their magic tricks are bogus.

The park is soon full and the lights on the stage dim. People cheer loudly, as well as Kuroo, when there’s purple smoke on the stage and the twin magicians appear. The twins are styled almost the same. Black wavy hair tied high up in a ponytail, purple velvet tailcoats, white collared shirts with a black bow-tie, short black faux leather shorts, and black ankle heel boots. The only difference is that one of the magicians is wearing black tights while the other is wearing fishnets.

“Welcome.” The magician with the tights greets.

“We are the Trickster Sisters.” The magician wearing fishnets follows.

“Tonight will be a magical night.” Tights.

“Filled with mystery and wonder.” Fishnets.

Their brown eyes survey the crowd.

“You won’t _ever_ forget this day.” Their wind chime voices promise simultaneously.

Kuroo squeals in his seat, and Tsukishima refrains from rolling his eyes at the magicians. _I_ _’ll definitely forget this night_ , he thinks.

The show begins, and sure enough, the tricks the magicians start performing is what Kuroo told him. There’s music playing in the background, which Tsukishima didn’t know they did, and it follows the pace of the types of tricks the magicians do. Sure enough, they pull bunnies out of a hat, cut paper into the shape of doves that then turns into actual doves, Tights cuts Fishnets in half. They do other simple tricks; Tights disappears from a box and levitates cards, Fishnets puts out a candle and _magically_ relights it, Tights gets a teenager from the crowd and hypnotizes them, she also _guesses_ some facts about another person in the crowd, and so on. Kuroo applauds everything the magicians do as if it were real.

Tsukishima would’ve fallen asleep if it weren’t for how loud his boyfriend was cheering and clapping. _You big lug, can_ _’t you see they’re frauds?_

The skies are black, and the stars are twinkling brightly. They’ve been at the show for almost two hours now. Tsukishima can’t wait for it to end because his ass hurts from sitting, and he just wants to go home.

Tights claps her hands once. “We’re at the end of the show.” She announces.

Tsukishima almost cheers.

“And that means we’ll do _one_ final trick.” Fishnets adds.

“We will need one lucky person to come up on the stage.”

Fishnets smirks. “So, if you would all look at your stamped hands please.”

Tsukishima massages his eyelids. He just wants this to be over. Around him he hears people gasp. Kuroo gasps too. Tsukishima opens his eyes to look at Kuroo, wondering what’s wrong. The stamp on the noirette’s hand is glowing purple. It reads 1117. His birthday. Tsukishima’s eyes widen, and he glances at the back of his own hand. 0927 is glowing in purple. Aren’t stamps supposed to be random numbers? Kuroo and Tsukishima glance at their glowing stamps together.

“Did it say anything online about this?” Tsukishima asks breathlessly.

Kuroo shakes his head, eyes wide. “No.”

“If your stamp isn’t glowing, it’s because you share the same birthday as someone else who’s here.” Tights informs.

“It just makes it easier for us to choose someone who doesn’t share a birthday.” Fishnets admits.

This can’t be happening. This can’t be real. This must be another trick. But how—how did they know their birthdays? How is their stamp now glowing? They paid with cash, so it isn’t possible for their information to be tracked down. Maybe there’s cameras hidden somewhere, recognizing their faces and collecting their information.

That still doesn’t explain their purple glowing stamps.

“Now, for the lucky person we choose.” Tights claps her hands once again.

Fishnets tosses her ponytail off her shoulder. “Would 09-”, she turns to the area where Kuroo and Tsukishima are sitting at, Tsukishima’s breathing hitches in his throat. “-27 please come up to the stage?” Both magicians are now looking directly at him.

“What the fuck?” He hears Kuroo mutter.

Tsukishima pales, his skin getting clammy. _Shit, maybe I underestimated these magicians. Maybe magic_ _’s real._

Tights smiles sweetly at him. “Come on up 0927.”

“Come on everyone, give 0927 some encouragement.” Fishnets begins to clap.

The crowd starts to cheer and applaud, telling Tsukishima to get on stage.

Tsukishima turns to Kuroo with a horrified expression. “I don’t wanna go up.”

Kuroo gives him a reassuring smile. “I’m sure it won’t be so bad. Just-the faster you go up and they do their magic, the faster we can go home, right?”

“Tetsu-”

“I’ll be right here, Kei. I promise. It’ll be alright.” Kuroo assures him.

Tsukishima glances back at the Trickster Sisters, and he swears that they have a knowing look in their brown eyes. Like they knew he was going to be hesitant. Like they knew he didn’t believe in magic. Tsukishima takes a deep breath and stands. The crowd cheers louder, and with his thumping heart, he passes Kuroo and makes his way down the aisle to the stage. He doesn’t understand why he feels afraid. Kuroo’s right, it’ll all be okay. They’re just going to do some magic trick where he hides, and they’ll say they made him disappear. Tsukishima takes a deep breath.

Fishnets points to the side of the stage where there’s steps. He steps up and slowly walks towards the Trickster Sisters. Up close, he can see that the twins have purple glitter on their brown cheekbones and the corners of their eyes.

Tights grins widely at Tsukishima. “So, 0927-or shall I say, Tsukishima Kei, are you ready?”

Tsukishima’s eyes widen. He’s sure that Kuroo muttered “What the fuck?” again.

“That’s your name, correct?” Fishnets asks.

“Y-yes.”

The crowd gasps. Tsukishima can feel his heartbeat quicken again, and not because of the crowd. He’s used to crowds since he’s played in volleyball tournaments. What’s getting him nervous is how the _fuck_ do these magicians know his birthday, name, _and_ knew exactly who he was in the audience.

“Please stand here, Mr. Tsukishima.” Fishnets tells him as she moves him more to the center of the stage. “Relax, don’t be nervous.”

He almost scoffs, but he keeps his face stoic even though his stomach is doing somersaults, and it feels like a hummingbird is caged in his chest.

“For today’s trick,” Tights addresses the crowd, “we will turn Mr. Tsukishima back to when he was seven years-old.”

Tsukishima whips his head at Tights. “What?”

She laughs. “Don’t worry, it will only be for a moment.”

The lights overhead turn purple, casting an ethereal glow on the magicians. Their brown eyes seem to glitter as they adjust to the darker lighting.

Tsukishima’s golden eyes roam the audience until he meets bronze. Kuroo looks both worried and amazed. He gives the blond an encouraging smile and mouths “It’s going to be okay.”

He doesn’t feel like it is.

Tights and Fishnets stand on either side of Tsukishima, facing him.

“Just take a deep breath and relax.” Fishnets advises.

He does. They tell him to close his eyes. He does. Both magicians begin to whisper an incantation, “ _Ahm kum Ra. Ahm kum Dei._ ” Tsukishima’s body begins to feel like it’s tingling. The tips of his fingers and toes buzzing like static from a TV screen. His skin starts to feel slightly damp. He wants to open his eyes to see what’s happening, but he can’t. It’s like when you’re asleep, and you know you’re dreaming so you try to open your eyes, but you just _can_ _’t_. Everything suddenly goes silent. People aren’t murmuring, the magicians aren’t whispering their incantation. Actually, Tsukishima thinks _he_ _’s_ the one who can’t hear anything. His hearing must be impaired. Even so, he doesn’t freak out. He doesn’t panic. He just feels relaxed. But all too soon, the silent goes away.

He hears gasps, cheers, applause, whistling, people shouting “WHAT?” He hears Kuroo. He hears him. Hears him shout, “OH MY GOD. TSUKKI!”

Tsukishima opens his eyes then, slowly. It’s slightly blurry. He touches his face and doesn’t feel his glasses, but his cheeks feel unnaturally squishy. Before he can complain, he feels a hand on his shoulder. He turns and looks at Tights.

She smiles gently at him. “Here.” She hands him his glasses.

Tsukishima thanks her and puts them on. He realizes, though, that they’re too big. _That_ _’s weird_. He has to hold them up with one hand, and he gazes out at the crowd. Everyone in the audience is in shock, but they’re still cheering, clapping, whistling. He looks at Kuroo. He’s never seen his lover look so paralyzed, mouth hanging open, eyes almost bugging out of their sockets. Tsukishima looks up— _looks up_ —to the magicians.

The Trickster Sisters are glancing down at him with innocent smiles.

“Did I fall?” Tsukishima asks. He stops short and his eyebrows crease. His voice sounds awfully high. Still holding his glasses, he looks down at his body and he lets out a surprise yell. Well, more like a squeak. His legs! His torso! His arms! They’re short! His clothes also shrunk with him! Tsukishima looks up at the twin magicians again. “What did you do to me?!” His voice is annoyingly high-pitched.

Tights tilts her head. “We said we’d turn you into a seven year-old.”

“I thought you were lying!”

Fishnets scoffs. “Listen, _kid_ , we don’t lie. Our magic is the real deal.”

Tsukishima fumes. “I’m not a _kid_! I’m an _adult_! Now turn me back!”

Fishnets glares and crosses her arms.

Tights turns to the crowd. “And that is the end of our show! Thank you, thank you everyone and have a magical night!”

“Aren’t you supposed to turn me back, so they can see?!”

Fishnets turns away from Tsukishima to smile and wave at the crowd, then she and her twin bow. The deep purple curtains close as the audience gives a standing ovation.

Tsukishima frantically searches for Kuroo. “Tetsu!” he screams. Before the curtains completely close, he sees Kuroo run towards the stage, to the oncoming crowd.

He glares at the magicians and stomps his foot. “Turn me back!”

“Relax shorty, we’ll-” Tights begins to say but her twin cuts her off.

“No. Ever since you dogged me and called me a witch I had it in for you.” Fishnets spits.

Tsukishima squints. “When did I call you a witch?”

“Earlier when my sister and I were walking down the sidewalk.”

“When? I don’t remember seeing you!” His voice is squeaky.

Instantly, both the magicians transform. Fishnets is the angry woman and Tights is the bratty child.

Tsukishima’s eyes widen. “That was you?!”

They turn back to their normal self. Or maybe this isn’t their true form either.

“My sister and I like to change our appearances for fun. We decided to go for a mother-daughter scenario and she pissed me off.” Fishnets explains. “Of course, we can’t just _transform_ in front of the world, so I had to drag her somewhere isolated so we could change. And then _you_ ,” she points down at Tsukishima, “looked at us like we were _disgusting_. I could tell that you weren’t gonna move aside, so that’s why I bumped into you. And then you called me a _witch_.”

“This is all because you were in a bad mood, and I made it worse, so you wanted to take it out on someone?!” Tsukishima yells. Damn, was his voice really this high?

Tights laughs and shrugs. “Basically. She was in a bad mood and you just happened to piss her off more. Wrong place, wrong time.”

Tsukishima balls his fists. “This is absurd. You _are_ a witch, how is that an insult?”

Fishnets’s aura feels like death. “I don’t like being called a witch!”

“Just give up, kid. You can’t reason with her. Don’t worry, the spell will wear off in forty-eight hours.” Tights says.

“Forty-eight hours?! I can’t wait that long! I have to work!”

Just then, Kuroo bursts through the curtains. He stares at Tsukishima with wide eyes, out of breath, then turns to the magicians, and back to Tsukishima. “I’m sorry I took so long. Damn crowd wouldn’t let me through.”

Tights sighs. “Your boyfriend will turn back to his normal self in forty-eight hours.”

Kuroo frowns. “That long? Just change him back now.”

“He can explain it to you.” Fishnets yawns. “It’s time for us to go.”

Tsukishima shakes his head. “Go? No, no, no, you can’t. Please, change me back.”

Fishnets grins. “See ya later, kid.” She waves, and Tights snaps her fingers. There’s a puff of purple smoke and the magicians are gone.

Tsukishima stares as the smoke evaporates, not really processing that they’re indeed gone. He stares hopelessly. He was going to be stuck as a kid for forty-eight hours? It might not entirely seem like a big deal, but it is for Tsukishima. He likes to be in control of things. He likes his routine. The only time he allows the unexpected is when it comes from Kuroo. But this, this is something else entirely. Is it a bad dream? He pinches himself. No, it’s real. With wide golden eyes, he looks up at Kuroo, still holding his glasses up with one hand. He’s now a little more than two feet shorter than his boyfriend.

Kuroo fixes his gaze on the small blond. “I’m sorry, Tsukki. This is my fault. I shouldn’t have dragged you to this show.”

“It’s not your fault.” Tsukishima assures. He reaches for Kuroo’s hand and sighs when it’s completely enveloped. “Let’s go home.”

“You don’t want to look for them?”

“Tetsu, they disappeared. They could be anywhere. I’m tired. I just wanna go home.” He sounds exactly like when he was a kid at a family gathering, begging his mom that he wants to leave.

Wanting to lighten up the mood, Kuroo asks, “Want me to carry you?”

He earns a glare and a kick to the shins from Tsukishima.

Kuroo keeps a tight hold of Tsukishima’s hand as they exit the now empty park, except for the cleaning crew. He holds onto him tightly as they head to the train station, during the train ride, and all the way to their home.

They kick off their shoes after Kuroo locks the door. Tsukishima gazes at his smaller feet and shoes, then at the rest of his body.

“We’re gonna need to go shopping for some clothes. Just two days’ worth. Also,” he adjusts his spectacles, “new glasses.”

Kuroo saunters to the sofa and throws himself down in a heap. He rakes his hand through his crazy hair. “I’m really so-”

“Please stop apologizing.”

Kuroo smiles a little at Tsukishima’s high voice and childish face. “Kei, I know you’re upset. You hate surprises and _this_ ,” he gestures to the blond’s small frame, “is definitely a _big_ fucking surprise.

Tsukishima sighs and sits down next to Kuroo, leaning up against him. “What are we supposed to do? Those fucking witches-”

He couldn’t help himself. Kuroo narrows his eyes at Tsukishima. “Hey, language.”

Tsukishima instantly blushes. “I’m _not_ a kid.”

“Well right now you are. It doesn’t sound right.” Tsukishima’s voice is adorably high, plus his appearance is of when he was seven years-old. It doesn’t sound or look right when he curses. “And until you’re back to your normal self, the only thing we can do is hug and hold hands. Only kisses on the cheek and forehead.”

“No shit.”

“Kei.”

Tsukishima groans. “ _Fine_ , I won’t cuss. Then what are we gonna do?”

Kuroo wraps his arm around Tsukishima as they lean back on the cushions. Tsukishima rests his head on Kuroo’s chest. “They’re supposed to do another show tomorrow in another park. It’s 3 hours away, but we can go look for them and try to convince them to change you back.”

Tsukishima hums. “That sounds good. Yeah, let’s do that. You’ll have to go early in the morning to the store to buy my glasses and clothes, though.”

“Why just me? We’ll both go.”

“Tetsu, I don’t wanna risk the possibility of running into someone we know and them seeing me like this. It’s embarrassing enough that you have to see me.”

Kuroo pulls him away to stare at his younger face and grins. “Embarrassing? Tsukki, you’re so adorable!”

“Quit it.”

“I’m being serious! Your cheeks are so round, like a chipmunk. Your eyes are rounder too. And I never knew your ears were like Dumbo’s. You’re so tiny!” Kuroo pinches his ear, grinning like an idiot.

Tsukishima stands up and stomps his foot very childishly. “First of all, my ears are _not_ like Dumbo’s. Secondly, stop teasing me.” He pouts. Even though he’s still mentally his twenty-three year-old self, he can’t help but act a little bit like the seven year-old that he was—is. He’s tall for his age, almost four feet, and even skinnier than he already was. His glasses—which he doesn’t understand why the witches didn’t shrink as well—sit too big on his face. His voice is also squeaky. He remembers that at this age he would blush easily and pout a lot. Tsukishima wonders if he’ll impulsively act like that again now. Well, he’s sure he is since he’s already done a few of those things. He yells internally.

Kuroo chuckles. “I’m sorry, I can’t help it. You’re adorable. Whenever Akiteru or Yamaguchi tell stories of your childhood, I always wish that I could’ve known you then to see little Tsukki for myself. And here you are, as a kid again, albeit it’s a fucked up situation.”

Tsukishima crosses his arms.

“Awe, come on, Tsukki. I know this sucks, but we at least have to look at the brighter side of things. I feel like shit and this is my fault-”

“It’s not your fault!” Tsukishima instantly clamps his mouth shut. He never yells. At least, as an adult, it takes a lot for him to yell. Although now that he’s a kid, it’s easy to make him retaliate. When he thinks about it, earlier he yelled at the magicians too. He grits his teeth, _Damn it, have I lost my cool?_

Kuroo just smiles remorsefully. “So you say.”

Tsukishima lets out a deep breath, stepping closer to Kuroo. He puts one hand on Kuroo’s shoulder while he holds his glasses up with the other, gazing into Kuroo’s bronze eyes. “Listen to me and believe me when I say, _it_ _’s not your fault_. I shouldn’t have been rude earlier when I glared at them at the sidewalk-”

Kuroo raises his brows. “When did you see them at the sidewalk?”

“Tch,” Tsukishima’s face darkens, “they were the angry lady and child. The lady that bumped into me and who I called a witch.”

Kuroo deadpans. “Are you fucking serious?” Then the corner of his lip twitches. He tries to frown and keep a straight face, but his lips keep twitching.

“Go ahead,” Tsukishima rolls his eyes. “Laugh it off.”

He does. Kuroo cackles loudly and throws his head back. Tears spring at the corners of his eyes as he holds his stomach. “Of course, you had to have shitty luck. Of course, out of everyone it’d be you.”

Despite that a part of him is furious and upset, Tsukishima can’t help but laugh a little as well. Kuroo’s laughter has always been contagious.

Kuroo has always been contagious.

The cackling hyena is right. Tsukishima should look at the brighter side of things. Before, and even some time after he knew Kuroo, Tsukishima was a pessimistic person. Well, he was both a pessimistic and a realist. Ever since he started to hang out more with Kuroo and they eventually became boyfriends, Tsukishima has become less of those things. Yes, the situation is the worst he’s ever been in—actually, no, scratch that. The worst was when Bokuto and Akaashi walked in on him and Kuroo during intercourse. Akaashi had immediately apologized and walked away. Bokuto, that damn owl with his frosted tips, had laughed and cheered, “All right, Kuroo! So, you’re the one who tops!” Akaashi returned to pull him away by the ear.

“So yes, I got on her bad side, and she decided to do this to me.” Tsukishima explains.

Kuroo calms down and wipes the tears from his eyes, gaze softening. “Well, it was either you or some other poor soul.” He grabs Tsukishima’s hand, squeezing it once. “But don’t worry. We’ll find them tomorrow and they’ll turn you back. If they don’t… then we both won’t go into work on Monday and just wait until the spell wears off.”

Tsukishima nods. “Sounds like a plan.” He can work with a plan. A plan is good.

“Now,” Kuroo grins, “it’s past your bedtime. Come on kiddo, let’s go brush your teeth.” He ruffles Tsukishima’s hair, who glares icily at him.

If looks could kill.

It’s still early for bed, only a quarter after 10 PM, but so much has happened and Tsukishima feels drained suddenly. Possibly because of his younger body. Too much happened, and it was a lot for him to take in. He wants to shower, brush his teeth, and go to sleep.

Tsukishima finds the smallest pair of boxer briefs that he owns, and grabs a shirt, Kuroo’s shirt, to sleep in. He turns to Kuroo, who’s lying on the bed with his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling. “I’ll be done in fifteen minutes.”

Usually on their days off, he and Kuroo bathe together. Unfortunately, regarding their circumstances, they can’t do that this weekend, and it honestly pains Tsukishima because he loves bathing with Kuroo. The bubbles that they use are soothing and smell wonderfully of jasmine, soft classical music plays in the background, rose scented candles are lit and are the only light source. Tsukishima and Kuroo just hold onto each other and ease into a blissful silence. He was really looking forward to that this weekend.

“Okay, I’ll wait until you’re done.”

Tsukishima can tell that he’s just as upset about not being able to bathe as well.

He showers, dries himself, cleans his ears and belly button, applies lotion, gets dressed, and brushes his teeth.

Tsukishima stares back at his reflection in the mirror. His cheeks are indeed round, as are his eyes. His ears look bigger too. He’s glad to know that he grows into them in his teenage years. Tsukishima wrinkles his nose. Seeing himself as a kid again, he tries to imagine what he’d look like with different features. What if instead of his blond hair, it was black and sticking up? His golden eyes stay the same color, but the shape becomes more sly. He’s also tan, but his frame stays the same. The image he creates easily appears in his mind. He frowns and shakes his head as if that would get rid of the image. It doesn’t, but he wills it away. It’s absurd to imagine because sadly it isn’t possible. And why was he thinking about it now? He scoffs at his reflection and exits the bathroom.

Unfortunately, his smallest pair of underwear are still too big for his small frame, so he holds them up with one hand and his glasses with the other. It’s also not helping that Kuroo’s shirt is basically hanging off his body. It’s too late now to go to the store to get him some pajamas.

When Tsukishima enters the room Kuroo glances at him, still in the same position he was before. A gentle smile graces his lips when he spots the boy.

He sits up and slides off the bed. “I’ll go get a rubber band.”

Tsukishima leans against the bed and pulls up his underwear. Within a few minutes Kuroo returns and hands him a rubber band. Tsukishima gathers the extra fabric on one side of his hips then ties it. He takes a few light steps and is glad when his underwear stays in place. He glances up at Kuroo, who’s leaning against the door frame watching him with amusement, and beams. Kuroo almost faints.

Little Tsukishima just grinned with his teeth.

“Alright, you should go to sleep while I shower.” Kuroo suggests.

Tsukishima gets on the bed and jumps, causing his glasses to fall. “Let’s play a game!”

For a moment, concern flashes across Kuroo’s bronze eyes. “A game? No, Tsukki, come on. Weren’t you tired?”

“Not anymore!” He continues to jump.

“Get down, you’re gonna get hurt. And watch out for your glasses!” Kuroo grabs them.

Tsukishima jumps and lands on his bottom as he pants. “You’re boring! Can we _please_ play?”

Kuroo sighs. “Tsukki-”

He giggles and his cheeks flush. “Tadashi gave me that nickname, did you know? Yup, Tadashi did. I didn’t like it at first, it was lame. But I like it now.”

“Well, it is a cute nickname, just like mo-”

Tsukishima slides off the bed and takes the glasses from Kuroo’s grasp. “Can I play a video game? I wanna play the game Kenma gave you.” He pouts.

“Kei, I said no. It’s been a long day, and you need to sleep ‘cause we have a long day ahead tomorrow.”

“But _why_?” The small boy cries and hangs his head back.

“Because we need to get you back to normal.”

“I am normal. _You_ _’re_ weird.”

“What?”

Tsukishima sways back and forth. “You like that nasty fish macka-something.”

“Mackerel.”

“Your hair,” he points, “looks like a rooster.”

Kuroo self-consciously pats down his hair. Pink tints his face.

“You laugh like a hyena, too.”

“Hey, you’re not so perfect either Mr. Volleyball Is Just A Club!” Kuroo voices. The tips of his ears feel warm.

Tsukishima covers his mouth and giggles.

 _That little shit,_ the noirette glares. “I’m gonna take a shower, and when I get back you _better_ be asleep.”

“I’m gonna take a shower, and when I get back you _better_ be asleep.” Tsukishima imitates.

“Dammit, Kei!”

* * *

When Kuroo steps back into their room after his shower, he finds Tsukishima fast asleep. The little crow is curled up in the fetal position. Kuroo’s never seen him sleep like that. He smiles gently and swipes a strand of hair from Tsukishima’s forehead. Never could he have imagined that something like this would happen to them. Especially to his boyfriend out of all people. He believes that Lev or Bokuto, even Hinata, would be the type of people to get into this freak situation. Kuroo thinks back to Tsukishima’s cry, when he called his name after the show, and his smile fades. Guilt settles in the pit of his stomach as he remembers little Tsukishima’s horror-stricken face.

Kuroo clenches his hand into a fist, _I_ _’m so fucking sorry, Kei._

Kuroo turns off the bedside lamp and gets under the covers. He places a soft kiss on Tsukishima’s forehead, “Good night, Tsukki.” He lies on his stomach, squishing the pillow to both sides of his head. He knows the blond loves his rooster hair. Before he fully dozes off, Kuroo feels Tsukishima snuggle into his side. He grins lazily into the pillow and falls asleep.

* * *

“Make sure you get the right sizes. If you’re not sure then ask for help.”

“Don’t worry, I got it. You sure you don’t want a new pair of shoes?”

“No. Text me when you get there, and when you’re on your way back.”

“Okay, okay.”

“And remember, nothing kiddish or stupid.”

Kuroo lowers his brows. “You know, _I_ _’m_ older than you. Especially now, I’m _much_ older than you.”

“Tch, I don’t care.” Tsukishima hates that he can’t sound intimidating. That he can’t cross his arms to stare down— _up_ —at Kuroo because he has to hold his glasses. What he hates most, though, is that Kuroo’s treating him like a child. He knows that the noirette can’t help it because he’s always been like that for as long as Tsukishima’s known him. Back in high school, during volleyball matches, Kuroo would always call them kids or say something stupid like, “Ah, youth.”

This morning Tsukishima was the first to wake up, like always, and while he was making himself some eggs Kuroo walked in and scolded him for using the stove. Kuroo also didn’t let him drink his morning coffee. Tsukishima was about to throw a tantrum but was able to stop himself before he committed such a childish act.

 _I_ _’m twenty-three. I’m twenty-three,_ he reminds himself.

Kuroo shrugs on his sweater, it’s summer but the mornings get chilly, eying the kitchen. “And don’t drink any coffee when I’m gone, it’s not good for your growing body.”

Tsukishima pouts and blushes lightly.

“If you’re such an adult, then you’ll be able to refrain yourself from drinking any.”

“Yes, _my liege_.” Tsukishima bows.

Kuroo blankly stares at him, then ruffles his hair, the boy swatting his hand away. “I’ll be back in a bit.” He opens the door and gazes back at the blond. “Don’t open the door for anyone else, got it?” Kuroo grins.

Tsukishima scowls and pushes him out the door. “Hurry up, I wanna go find those witches.” Then slams the door shut and locks it. He could hear Kuroo laughing from the other side.

To pass the time, Tsukishima turns on the TV and watches a documentary. He receives a text from Kuroo that says he arrived at the store. At some point Tsukishima gets hungry and serves himself a bowl of strawberry ice cream. He gets tired of the documentary and flips through the channels, stopping when he comes across _Tom & Jerry_. A couple episodes later he receives another text from Kuroo that says he’s on his way back. Tsukishima responds “Ok”, finishes his ice cream, and sets it on the coffee table.

When Kuroo enters the apartment, his eyes widen at the sight before him. Tsukishima is laughing while watching _Tom & Jerry_, strawberry ice cream residue on the corners of his mouth, the empty bowl of said ice cream on the coffee table. Tsukishima holds his glasses as he giggles toothily, cheeks rosy.

Not wanting to forget this moment, though he doubts he ever will, Kuroo fishes out his phone from his pocket, makes sure the shutter is off, and takes a picture. Tsukishima only notices that he’s not alone when Kuroo closes the door. The little crow whips his head, frightened at first, then calms when he sees Kuroo.

“You moron, don’t you knock?” Tsukishima chides.

Kuroo furrows his brows. One moment Tsukishima acts like a child, then the next he’s back to his normal self. He lightly shakes his head and smirks, eying the empty bowl with a raised brow. “Isn’t it a little too early to eat ice cream?” It was in fact 9:26 AM.

Tsukishima fiddles with his fingers and looks away. “I-I got hungry.” His glasses begin to slide off his face, but he catches them before they fall.

“It’s okay, you did eat breakfast. But no more desserts for today, just meat and vegetables.”

“Yuck, vegetables?” Tsukishima scrunches up his nose in disgust.

Kuroo chuckles and sits down beside Tsukishima. After setting the two bags on the table, he licks his thumb and wipes the sticky ice cream off the blond’s face. “Okay, I got you two changes of clothes, underwear, socks, and pajamas as you requested. Plus, your glasses.” The first thing Kuroo pulls out from one of the bags is the black glasses case and hands it to Tsukishima.

The boy immediately opens it, takes off his big glasses, and puts on the new ones. He releases a sigh of relief when they stay on his face.

Kuroo smiles and pulls out the rest of the items he bought. “Here are your socks and underwear. I also got you these pajamas,” he smirks as he holds them up. The color scheme is yellow and navy blue, with a Tyrannosaurus Rex on the shirt, and T-Rex’s scattered on the pants. A tick appears on Tsukishima’s temple. Kuroo merely continues to smirk. “I got you these, too.” They’re shirts, one is a plain blue t-shirt with a yellow star on the breast pocket, and the other is a striped red and gray long sleeve. He also got him two pairs of black and tanned jeans.

Tsukishima sighs as he eyes the pajamas. “I thought I said nothing kiddish or stupid.”

“Aww, come on Tsukki!” Kuroo pulls up the pajamas as he admires them. “They’re cute!”

“Whatever. I’m gonna go change and then we can head out.” He stands, putting everything back in the bags, taking them with him. He glances at Kuroo, offering him a kind smile. “Thank you.”

Kuroo returns the gesture. “You’re welcome.”

* * *

“Stop fidgeting.”

“Why?”

“Because—because it’s distracting.”

Tsukishima giggles. “That’s a dumb excuse.”

For a quick moment, Kuroo worriedly gazes at the giggling boy, but quickly masks his features. _Please, let us find the twins._ His expression softens as he continues to stare at Tsukishima, who’s now playing a game on his phone, tongue sticking out. He opted to wear the striped red and gray long sleeve, paired with the tanned jeans, and his black Vans that shrunk with him.

The train ride to the city where the magicians are going to perform takes three hours. Both Kuroo and Tsukishima are glad when they arrive and exit the train after sitting for so long. The city is bustling with many individuals enjoying their Sunday off, ignoring the two slightly confused outsiders.

Tsukishima glances up at Kuroo. “Where to?” he asks in his soft high-pitched voice.

“Uh,” Kuroo looks at the map on his phone and turns west, “this way.”

They stroll down the street, Kuroo following his map and holding onto Tsukishima’s hand while the latter scans his surroundings. Kuroo bumps into a few people on his way as he follows the map on his phone. They pass by a bulletin board filled with fliers of current and upcoming events and attractions for tourists to visit.

When he sees the fliers, Tsukishima yells out, “Cool! They have a dinosaur museum!”, but Kuroo merely grunts in acknowledgment. A few times he has to tug Tsukishima away from staring into windows of toy stores. The blond whines about wanting to go inside to see what they have, but Kuroo scolds him and claims that they’re not there to shop.

The little boy pouts. “You’re a meanie, Tetsu.”

“I’m not mean, you’re just being a brat.”

It takes them about fifteen minutes to find the park where the magicians are going to perform, the stage and seats are barely getting set up. When Kuroo checks the time, he sees that it’s after 1:30 PM. He curses inwardly. They could’ve arrived earlier, but the train was delayed. The show doesn’t start for another five hours. It should be enough time to search, and hopefully, find the Trickster Sisters.

Kuroo pulls Tsukishima along with him as he heads for one of the workers that looks like the boss. “Excuse me?”

The man looks up from his clipboard and raises his brows as a way of saying, “I’m listening.”.

“The magicians that are going to perform here, would you happen to know where they’re staying at?”

The man shakes his head. “Sorry kid, we don’t know anything. We just set up.”

Kuroo sighs and thanks him.

“Now what?” Tsukishima asks. “Can we go to another park to play?”

“What? No, Kei.” Kuroo bites his lip and looks around. It’s no use. The twins can change their appearance, for all he knows that man could’ve been one of them. They could be anyone, or not here at all. Just to be sure, he decides to ask all the workers that he sees. One of them is bound to know something.

“Come on, let’s go ask everyone if they know anything.”

They spend the next forty-five minutes asking about the magicians’ whereabouts, but no one knows anything. Kuroo’s told that the magicians just appear right before the show and disappear right after. He grits his teeth as he and Tsukishima leave the park.

Golden eyes widely stare up at Kuroo. “Are we going to another park?”

Annoyed, Kuroo answers, “No, Kei. Stop asking about going to the damn park.” He regrets his harsh tone when Tsukishima’s eyes lower and his shoulders sag.

“Shit.” He mumbles and kneels to Tsukishima’s height. “Tsukki,” he tilts his chin up, “please forgive me. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. We just can’t play right now, okay? But we will later, I promise.” Kuroo hopes he doesn’t have to since by then Tsukishima should be back to his adult form. For some reason if that doesn’t happen, then he’ll gladly take the boy to the park.

Tsukishima sticks out his pinky. “Promise?”

Kuroo hooks his pinky. “I promise.” He receives a toothy grin from Tsukishima.

“Come on, let’s walk around and maybe we’ll find something.” He lightly pinches Tsukishima’s ear.

“Okie dokie.”

For the next two hours Kuroo tugs Tsukishima throughout the surrounding area, asking people about the magicians. He either gets an honest “No, sorry” or a weird look and is ignored. He even enters a few hotels to ask the receptionists, and he gets the same answer, “Sorry, sir, there’s no twin magicians staying here”. He peeks into alleyways, store windows, cars that pass by, people that surround him. He searches online for any other information that might be available, but to no avail.

 _Why the fuck doesn_ _’t anyone know anything about these damn witches?!_ Kuroo growls internally and almost throws his phone on the ground to stomp on it. They’ve wasted three hours searching and asking. How can two people who basically don’t exist be so fucking popular?

“Tetsu,” Tsukishima yawns. “I’m tired and hungry.” He rubs one eye with his free hand that isn’t clasped tightly in Kuroo’s grip.

Kuroo mentally smacks himself. He forgot that Tsukishima can’t keep up with him now since he’s a kid. Shame settles in his heart as he kneels in front of the blond. “I’m sorry, Tsukki.” He caresses his cheek. “Here,” Kuroo turns, “climb on my back and I’ll walk us to a cafe.”

Tsukishima instantly brightens and hops on Kuroo’s back, tightening his hold and locking his ankles together. Kuroo grasps the back of Tsukishima’s knees and brushes through the crowd in search for a cafe. In the corner of an intersection Tsukishima points at a cafe, only being able to see the words Cafe Luna. They cross the street alongside others, and when they enter the cafe Tsukishima squeals.

“It’s a cat cafe!”

Sure enough, there are cats sleeping, playing, or snuggling with customers. Kuroo reads the sign by the menu that exclaims “Welcome to Cat Cafe Luna!”. Under the sign is an image of a black cat sleeping on a crescent moon.

Tsukishima starts to slide off Kuroo’s back.

“Whoa! Hold on, you’re gonna get hurt.”

Once Tsukishima’s feet touch the ground he grabs Kuroo’s hand and tugs him forward. “Come on, come on! I wanna play with the cats!”

Kuroo orders two sandwiches, coffee, and buys a bottle of water from the vending machine.

“First you’ll eat, and then you can play with the cats.”

Tsukishima smirks. “Yeah, yeah, _you_ _’re_ the adult.” He waves his hand as he turns to search for a place to sit.

Kuroo anxiously stares after him for a moment and follows.

When they sit, Tsukishima smiles at a calico cat that’s lying on the floor beside their table. It only takes five minutes for the server to bring them their food and coffee.

“Eat all of it, okay?”

Tsukishima rolls his eyes. “Jeez Tetsu, can you please stop treating me like a child?”

“See, that’s the thing.” Kuroo looks around to make sure no one overhears them.

“What is?”

“You—you act like a child. You do. One minute you’re _you_ , and the next you’re seven year-old Kei. Actually, for the last few hours you’ve been little Tsukki.”

“What are you talking about?” Tsukishima takes a small bite of his sandwich.

“I think you can’t control how you act. You don’t get to choose which Tsukki to be. Your brain doesn’t _or_ can’t process the fact that you have two completely different mentalities. Do you not remember anything from earlier?”

Tsukishima quickly scarfs down most of his sandwich. _Damn, he was hungry._ Kuroo remembers his and takes large bites.

“Well,” the boy places his elbows on the table as he stares at the crumbs on his plate, “now that you mention it and I think about it, I do remember some things. I guess because I’m a kid, my memory is fleeting. So,” he takes a sip of water before continuing, “you’re saying that by my having two mentalities, I have what, a split personality and it makes me forget?”

“Children do have shorter attention spans, and they don’t always think about remembering things unless it’s significant. Your seven year-old self doesn’t seem to understand what’s going. It could also be that since your mentalities switch, your thoughts and memories of your kid self don’t transfer to your normal self.” Kuroo rubs his face and continues. “And not exactly a split personality since you don’t have a disorder, but kind of in a way that there’s two versions of you. Your normal self, and your kid self. It’s like your mind just randomly decides which one it wants to be. There’s no on or off switch for you to control.”

Tsukishima swallows the last of his sandwich as he mulls this over. No control? He has no control over himself? He slightly scrunches up his nose as he ponders what Kuroo said.

Kuroo’s lips quirk up in half a smile as he observes Tsukishima, but just as quickly as it appears, it drops. Tsukishima wouldn’t be in this fucked up situation if it weren’t for him.

“What did I do that was… childish? I remember some things, but I just want to be sure that my memory doesn’t fail me.”

Kuroo sips his coffee before answering. “Well, I had to pull you away from toy stores, you whined and called me a meanie. You wanted to go to the park and play. Throughout our search you didn’t complain or put up a fight. You either read signs or played on your phone when we would stop. You basically did what I said we’d do. If that was twenty-three year-old Tsukki, you would’ve complained at first, helped me for about an hour, then you’d sit down and let me do the rest on my own. You also got excited about seeing the cats and playing with them.” He sips more of his coffee. “And yesterday you were jumping on the bed and didn’t wanna sleep because you wanted to play games.”

Tsukishima’s golden eyes are wide, and he takes a deep breath. “What does this mean?”

“It means that you’re turning into a kid.” A new voice answers.

Kuroo and Tsukishima whip their heads to see one of the twin magicians. They’re not sure which one it is since she’s in regular clothes; boyfriend jeans, an off shoulder white blouse, and white shoes.

“I’m not the one that was pissed off.” Tights chuckles as she pulls a chair from another table to sit with them.

Kuroo gapes. “What are you doing here? How’d you find us?”

Tights shrugs and pulls a sturgeon. “Must’ve been a coincidence.”

 _I doubt that_ _’s true,_ Tsukishima thinks. He turns in his seat to face her. “What did you mean when you said that I’m turning into a kid?”

“Exactly that. The longer you spend as a seven year-old, the more you’ll revert into one.” She says it so nonchalantly that Tsukishima balls his fists.

“Okay, but you and your sister can change him back, right? Even if he—if he fully turns into a child?”

Tights nods. “Yup, it’ll be as if it never happened. Poof,” she snaps her fingers, “you’ll be back to regular ol’ Tsukishima.”

Kuroo relaxes and smiles at Tsukishima, who returns the expression.

“There’s only one problem.”

Their grins drop, and they turn to stare at Tights.

Kuroo leans back in his chair. “What’s the problem?”

She smiles sheepishly. “I can’t undo the spell without my sister and… I don’t know where she’s at.”

“Excuse me?” Tsukishima squawks.

Kuroo worriedly glances at him and then at Tights. “You don’t know? Aren’t you always together? Don’t you have twin telepathy?”

“Well, yeah. But last night we got into a huge argument about this,” she gestures to Tsukishima, “and she stormed out. I tried calling and texting her, but she doesn’t answer me.”

“Oh my god.” Kuroo groans as he palms his face.

“And…”

“There’s more?” He cries.

This time when Tights casts her eyes at Tsukishima, he can read the contrite in them. “And if the spell isn’t lifted when it strikes forty-eight hours, we won’t be able to reverse it. You’ll stay as a seven year-old and grow up again.”

Tsukishima’s heart drops.

“No, no, no. You said it’ll wear off-” Kuroo starts but Tights cuts him off.

“That’s why I got into an argument with my sister. She learned this spell from another magician. She lied and told me that it’s a spell that only lasts for forty-eight hours. We only tested it on animals and then we’d turn them back. I never thought to wait until the hours were up to see if it was true or not. I didn’t think I should.” She shrugs. “Last night was the first time we used it, and since I believed her, I went along with it because I thought it’d wear off. Then we got into the argument and she told me the truth. That’s when she stormed off.” She hangs her head. “I’m incredibly sorry.” She whispers.

Kuroo doesn’t know what to do. They need to find Fishnets _soon_. If the spell isn’t lifted off from Tsukishima in the next twenty-eight hours, then he’ll remain as a kid.

 _He_ _’ll remain as a kid,_ Kuroo gulps.

Tsukishima will need to grow up again. He and Kuroo won’t be able to be together. They won’t be able to grow old together.

When Kuroo glimpses over to Tsukishima, his heart stops.

The little boy is crying silently as his whole face turns pink, his shoulders rigid, and his small hands are clenched so tightly that his knuckles turn white. He stares bitterly at Tights, who’s staring back at him with pity.

She reaches out to touch his hand, but he pulls back instantly.

“Don’t you dare.” He seethes, tears running down his chin.

Kuroo feels his eyes glaze. “Tsukki, it’ll be alright-”

The chair screeches as Tsukishima abruptly stands and pouts. The employees and few customers shoot confused looks their way. The cats scatter away from them.

Tsukishima glowers at Kuroo. “This is all _your_ fault. I didn’t wanna go to your stupid show and now _look at me!_ ”

Kuroo raises his palms in a “calm down” motion, and nervously eyes the people around them. They’re all watching with curiosity now. “Tsukki,” he mutters, “please calm down. We’ll find her sister. They’ll turn you back to normal.” But he knows Tsukishima’s right. It is his fault.

“It’s so easy for you to say because you’re not in my shoes.” He spits. Snot is now running down his nose, and he wipes it away furiously with his sleeve. “And don’t talk to me like I’m a child!”

Tights watches them with her lips pressed into a thin line. If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s hers and her twin. “Tsukishima, I know it seems like there’s no hope, and that it was a _huge_ dick move for us to do this to you. But my sister-”

“Your sister is a cock sucking bitch for doing this to me just because her feelings got hurt.” Tsukishima hisses.

Tights flinches.

Kuroo scowls and slams his fist on the table. “Kei, that’s enough!”

Tsukishima narrows his watery eyes at Kuroo, breathing heavily through his nose.

“Excuse me, please keep it down or I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” The manager of the cafe warns as she appears behind Tights.

Before Kuroo can apologize to the manager, Tsukishima bolts and rushes out of the cafe.

“Kei!” Kuroo yells, chasing after him.

Tights bows apologetically to the manager. “I’m incredibly sorry for the disturbance.” Then she darts away to follow Kuroo.

Since Tsukishima’s small, he easily manages to worm his way through the crowd as he runs away. Tears stream down his blotchy face as he looks for a place to hide.

“Kei! Kei wait! TSUKKI!” Kuroo yells as he loses sight of Tsukishima’s blond hair. He keeps bumping into people and it slows him down. Many of them insult him while others glare, but he doesn’t care. He needs to get to Tsukishima. He’s a kid, he can’t be alone in a foreign city. Something can happen to him. Someone can seriously hurt him. Kuroo shakes those thoughts away. No, he can’t think negatively. “Tsukki!” he calls out again.

He stops at a corner and frantically searches the people around him, but he doesn’t see the blond. Kuroo pulls out his phone and dials Tsukishima’s number. It goes straight to voicemail. “Tsukki, where are you? Please, I’m so sorry. You—we don’t know this area. Please tell me where you’re at. We’ll figure this out, I promise.” His voice cracks.

“Damn, he got away?” Tights pants as she stops beside him.

Kuroo doesn’t know what to do. He has to find Tsukishima, but he also needs to find Fishnets. He doesn’t know this city well enough to know where to start. He runs both hands through his hair and turns a full three-sixty but doesn’t spot his little Tsukishima. He didn’t even see which way he went. He doesn’t know what to do. His heart races a mile a minute and it feels like it’s going to burst.

Never has Kuroo felt so hopeless.

He jumps when he feels a gentle touch on his arm. He looks down at Tights.

“Relax. Take a deep breath.”

Kuroo shakes his head. “I can’t. Tsukki’s out there all alone. He could get hurt, or kidnapped, or—or worse.” He cries.

“He’s a smart kid. He can handle himself.”

“But this is a foreign city-”

“Take a deep breath. You freaking out won’t help us find him any sooner. You need to clear your head.”

Kuroo takes a couple of deep breaths, wiping his tears away.

Tights smiles. “Good. Okay, the show starts in…” she looks at the time on her phone, “about an hour and thirty minutes.”

Kuroo groans. “Can’t you skip it? I need you to help me find Tsukki.”

“I can’t, and I don’t think we should. It’s possible that my sister might show up.”

“Might?”

“We’ve never missed a show in our lives. I don’t think she’s gonna start now.”

“Then why…?” Kuroo feels drained. “ _Why_ did you make it sound like she completely disappeared?”

Tights grimaces. “I’m sorry. At the time I was freaked out that I hadn’t heard from her. But now that I think about it since it’s almost show time, she’ll most likely show up.” She realizes then that they’re still standing in the middle of the sidewalk and a few people glance at them. She pulls Kuroo aside against the wall of the building.

He glares at her. “You two just like fucking with us, don’t you?”

She clicks her tongue and crosses her arms. “No, we do not.”

He runs a hand through his hair again. “One moment you say something serious, and the next moment you fucking brush it off like it doesn’t matter.”

Tights tilts her head. “Do I?”

Kuroo’s face contorts into an exasperated expression. “You just did it right now! You take the situation in both a serious and trivial stride.”

“I wouldn’t say-”

“Look,” he cuts her off, “we’re just wasting time standing here. I need to find Tsukki.”

“Wait, wait. Let’s go find my sister first. I need you there with me to convince her to change Tsukishima back.”

“No, I need to get Tsukki _first_.”

“But you don’t know where to look for him.”

Kuroo furrows his brows. “I don’t care. I’ll find him.”

Tights sighs. “Okay, Kuroo, _think_. There has to be a place Tsukishima would go to.”

He’s about to ask how she knows _his_ name but changes his mind. He crosses his arms and stares down at his feet. There’s not many places that Tsukishima enjoys since he prefers to stay at home more often.

“Come on, there’s gotta be some place that he really likes. Somewhere that he’ll always agree to go to.”

“I don’t know this city. I don’t know what it has to offer. There could be lots of things here that Tsukki probably likes.”

Tights glances around. “I’m sure it’s the same as your city. Okay, well what does he like? The mall? Amusement parks, maybe? I think there’s a concert at some venue today.”

Kuroo shakes his head. “No, no, Tsukki doesn’t really like any of that.”

“Really? He sounds boring.”

“Tch, you don’t know him. Tsukki’s anything _but_ boring.”

Tights raises her palms. “My bad. Okay then lover boy, think clearly.”

Kuroo rubs his chin as he thinks. _Libraries, observatories, laboratories, aquariums, planetariums, zoos, museums, art walks, movie theaters_ —his eyes widen. _Of course._ _How can I be_ so _stupid?_ He pulls out his phone and types in the name on the map.

“See what happens when you clear your head?” Tights teases.

The directions load and show that it’s only three blocks away.

“Okay, you go get him and come right away to the park.”

Kuroo doesn’t need to be told twice. He dashes off and doesn’t care about pushing people out of the way. They yell and curse at him, but all he can think about is finding Tsukishima. He prays that Fishnets appears and agrees to help her sister change Tsukishima back. After this is all over, no more magic shows for them.

The two-story building comes into view. Kuroo power walks inside, buys a ticket, and searches for Tsukishima. He walks the entire first floor, trying not to look like a madman as his eyes search everywhere, then heading up to the second floor.

Many families are here with their children, as well as couples, and groups of teenage friends. They’re all taking pictures, reading the plaques, laughing, enjoying their normal day.

He wonders if Tsukishima will only take their children to museums and observatories while he takes them to amusement parks and sporting events.

Kuroo stops when he enters the third exhibit.

The small boy hugs himself as he gazes at the forty-five-foot Spinosaurus skeleton. Its sail alone is taller than Tsukishima now that he’s little.

Kuroo silently strolls to his side, hands in his pockets. “That’s one ferocious dinosaur.”

Tsukishima isn’t surprised by his presence. “They were one of the largest carnivores to ever exist. Could grow to be even bigger than a T-Rex.”

“Really?”

“Uh-huh. It’s also believed that they were both land and water creatures. Kind of like a crocodile.”

“Pretty scary.”

Tsukishima shrugs. “I’d say pretty awesome.”

Kuroo smiles, then looks around. “Say, how’d you get in? You have to be sixteen and older to be able to enter alone.”

“I asked a family if I can come in with them. I was gonna give them the money for the ticket, but they didn’t want it.”

“And they left you all alone?”

“No, they’re over there.” Tsukishima points at them with his chin. It’s two mothers with their son who are two displays down from them. “I said that I was going to wait for my uncle here. Described you so they wouldn’t worry.” Tsukishima smiles at them, letting them know he’s okay.

Kuroo chuckles. “Good cover.”

Tsukishima frowns as he bites the inside of his cheek.

“Don’t do that.” Kuroo says softly.

“I—” Tsukishima sighs, closing his eyes. “I shouldn’t have run away.” He then looks up at Kuroo. “I didn’t mean to lash out. I just—the thought of being stuck as a kid and having to grow up without you…”

“I thought the same thing… I know you don’t wanna hear me say it, but I truly am sorry.”

“Me too.” He murmurs. Tsukishima stares at his fiddling fingers. “I got your voicemail.”

Kuroo nods once.

“I never want to hear your voice break like that ever again because of me. I promise.” He sticks out his pinky and instantly feels it intertwine with another.

“I know.”

Tsukishima smiles softly and looks back up to the Spinosaurus. They’re quiet for a few moments, enjoying each other’s’ presence with their pinky fingers still intertwined between them. The exhibit grows quiet as the other attendees leave or move further down. The dim glow of the yellow lights is calming, and the cool air is soothing.

It’s peaceful.

Kuroo wishes that they can stay, but he needs for them to head back to the park.

“We should head to the show. Hopefully the other twin showed up.”

Tsukishima grasps Kuroo’s hand, who tightens the hold, and they exit the exhibit.

* * *

When they arrive at the park, the ticket booth employee says that they don’t need to pay and to head right in. By their confused expressions, the employee explains that it was the magicians’ orders.

It’s a few minutes after the show started, so Tsukishima and Kuroo sit and watch from afar. Tsukishima scowls the entire time, and Kuroo tells him to be on his best behavior. But it’s hard for Tsukishima to not be petty.

This crowd doesn’t understand that the magic in the show is real. That if you cross Fishnets she’ll fuck you over.

Both magicians appear as happy as clams. As if they didn’t almost ruin someone’s life the day before. Tsukishima wonders if he should sue. He decides against it. He doesn’t want to feel any more wrath from Fishnets. Plus, after this day, he doesn’t want to see them ever again in his life.

The last mind-blowing trick the magicians do is teleport a young woman into an oil painting for thirty seconds and then releasing her. Many of the spectators might not believe that she was truly stuck in an oil painting, but he and Kuroo do. And by the look on the woman’s face, so does she.

The show ends with a standing ovation. Tsukishima and Kuroo stick further to the edge to avoid the crowd and wade towards the stage. They climb up and step behind the curtains. Tights and Fishnets are dressed in the same garb as the day before. They smile simultaneously when they see Kuroo and Tsukishima.

“So, here to apologize?” Fishnets asks with a smirk.

Internally, Tsukishima cusses her out, but he appears calm. He swallows his pride and bows. “I’m sorry for the way I treated you yesterday. I shouldn’t have acted like such a jerk.” He’s an excellent liar except when it comes to Kuroo.

Fishnets grins. “Wow, who knew you had it in ya?”

Tights rolls her eyes.

“You should grovel some more.”

“For fucks sake, he’s suffered enough.” Tights shakes her head.

“Alright, alright. I forgive ya, kid.”

“Thank you.” Tsukishima stands upright. He looks at Tights, ready to bow and apologize, but she waves him off.

“Don’t worry about it.” She says.

“So, is everything cool between you two now?” Kuroo asks.

“Yup!” Tights pops the p. “All worked out.”

“That’s great, really. But um, can you please change me back?” Tsukishima fiddles with his fingers. His golden eyes are wide, almost innocent. He bites the inside of his cheek.

“Don’t do that.” Kuroo chastises.

“Well, since you asked so nicely.” Fishnets cracks her fingers, she and her sister striding over to Tsukishima.

“Wait.” Kuroo calls and they all turn to him. He scratches the back of his head and averts his eyes. “Can I say goodbye to little Tsukki?”

Tsukishima’s lips turn upward as he runs towards Kuroo, throwing his short arms around the startled man. For a few seconds Kuroo stands still, then he regains his composure and picks up Tsukishima, hugging him tightly. The small blond wraps his arms around Kuroo’s neck and lays his head on his shoulder.

Kuroo closes his eyes and squeezes a little tighter. They hold onto each other for a couple more moments until Kuroo bends to gently set Tsukishima down and pinches his ear. Tsukishima giggles, stands on his tip-toes, and kisses Kuroo’s cheek.

“Come on, kid, let’s change you back.” Tights says as she and her twin step beside Tsukishima.

Kuroo steps back as he watches, hopeful. He takes one last look at his little Tsukishima. Round face with rosy cheeks, wide golden eyes and ears a little too big. Such a beautiful child.

Their gazes meet and Kuroo smiles, almost wistfully. “I’ll miss you, little moonshine.”

Tsukishima grins toothily, eyes sparkling and rosy cheeks. A tear escapes from Kuroo as he laughs breathlessly.

The magicians tell Tsukishima to relax and to close his eyes. It takes a few more seconds for him to relax than the first time. He’s nervous and hopes it works. He wants things to go back to how they used to be. He listens to the twins chant a different incantation from the one before. “ _Kadeesh mal. Pared oos._ ” He feels tingly at the tips of his fingers and toes. His skin begins to feel damp, and like the first time, his hearing goes away. Everything feels serene.

He hears Kuroo’s sharp intake of breath. _Dear god,_ please _let me be back to my normal self._ Tsukishima’s almost afraid to open his eyes. Ever so slowly, he pries them open. The first thing his vision lands on is bronze eyes, then Kuroo’s relieved face. The twins each have their hands on their waist as they admire their handiwork.

“I did good.” They say at the same time.

Tsukishima touches his face. It’s no longer round, his jaw and cheekbones feel sharp. His glasses thankfully grew as well, (now he has an extra pair). He looks down at his lanky form and has never been so happy to see his long arms, torso, and legs.

Kuroo steps closer to Tsukishima, reaching with both hands to tenderly hold his face. Kuroo’s eyes slightly water as he smiles. “Welcome back, moonshine.”

“Glad to be back.” Tsukishima cheers inwardly when he hears his voice. He leans down, _finally_ , and places a chaste kiss on Kuroo’s lips. Oh, how he missed kissing him.

They hear a cough and reluctantly separate.

Fishnets smirks. “Come on, you were only a kid for a complete day.”

“May be true.” Tsukishima longingly gazes at Kuroo. “But it felt like a lifetime.”

Kuroo’s sure that his heart is going to burst.

“You lovesick pups.” Tights teases.

“Thank you, for changing me back.” Tsukishima bows.

Kuroo bows as well. “Yes, we’re incredibly grateful.”

Tights waves them off. “Eh, it’s no biggie. If anything, this is all my fault really. I need to control my anger. Maybe I should finally try anger management.”

Both men bolt upright. “ _Your_ fault?” Tsukishima asks at the same time Kuroo asks “ _Your_ anger?”

She laughs nervously then. “Yeah, about that. You see…” she claps twice, and Fishnets disappears. “I don’t have a twin.”

Tsukishima shakes his head. “I—I don’t understand.”

“It’s boring traveling alone. But with enough studying and _lots_ of practice, I was able to extract my alter ego!” Tights cheers.

“Hold on. Back up and start over.” Kuroo says.

“My ‘twin’ isn’t exactly my twin but more like the evil parts of me, hence my alter ego. She’s the bad cop, I’m the good cop.” Tights explains.

Tsukishima pinches the bridge of his nose. “So, what you’re saying then, is that you created your twin, which is your ‘evil’ side, because you were bored? And you could’ve actually changed me a long time ago?”

“Yup.”

“So, you really did just fuck with us?” Kuroo asks through gritted teeth.

“Uh-huh.”

“And you put us through all this… _why_?” Tsukishima can’t believe it. This was all just some fucked up sick joke.

Tights shrugs and pulls a sturgeon. “Eh, I was bored. Don’t worry, I do this to a lot of people.” She grins.

Kuroo opens his mouth but nothing comes out. He wants to yell at her, scream, but doesn’t want to risk her putting a spell on them or anything. He really hopes to never see her again, and he can’t believe she would actually do this to people.

On the other hand, Tsukishima wants to strangle her to death. She played with them as if they were toys. They were toys, just pawns for her little game. He doesn’t care, he wants to cuss her out.

Before he can, Kuroo grabs him by the hand and turns them around. His stern eyes warn Tsukishima to not say anything. This was a horrible weekend and they just need to get home.

Tights waves at their retreating backs. “Bye! It was nice meeting you guys! This was fun, and I hope you have a nice life!”

 _Fuck it,_ Kuroo thinks as his heated gaze meets the same expression on Tsukishima.

They look back, dirty looks ready and Tsukishima with an insult on the tip of his tongue, but all they’re met with is a puff of purple smoke.

Tsukishima groans as they turn forward. He was ready to tell her off. “We’re not leaving the house for the next couple of months unless it’s for work and to buy shit we need.”

Kuroo sighs as they walk hand in hand out of the park. “Agreed. And no more magic shows.”

“No more fucking magic shows. And I was right, they— _she_ , is like Bellatrix Lestrange.”

“You were right. But I gotta say,” Kuroo half smiles, “I’m gonna miss my little Tsukishima.”

Tsukishima rolls his eyes but chuckles softly. “Don’t worry, your little moonshine is still in here.” He places his hand over his heart. “He always will be.”

Kuroo’s heart soars and he kisses Tsukishima’s jaw. “My little Tsukki.” When he pulls away he clears his throat. “Speaking of which, I was actually thinking-”

“Be careful.”

“No, I’m being serious.” But Kuroo laughs nonetheless. “I was wondering, what do you think about having a kid?”

Tsukishima’s lips quirk up. “With you, I’d be willing to have one. But for right now,” he leans against his boyfriend, “I just want it to be me and you.”

Kuroo grins, squeezing his hand. “Sounds good to me.”

Even though it’s almost 9:30 PM, the streets are still marginally filled with people. Everyone was probably able to enjoy their weekend, not having some crazy shit happen to them.

No more magic shows.

 _"_ What do we do with the clothes I got you?” Kuroo asks.

Tsukishima tilts his head. “I suppose we can save them… for the future.” He smiles.

“Honestly, I was really looking forward to seeing you in those pajamas.”

“You can buy me an adult pair.”

“Seriously? Alright!”

When they near the train station Kuroo flirtatiously smirks. “You know, we should just take the day off tomorrow since we couldn’t spend _quality_ time together.”

An alluring smile graces Tsukishima’s lips as he gazes at Kuroo. “Can we take our relaxing bath first?”

“But of course. Anything for you, my sweet.”

It was an exhausting weekend. Something that Tsukishima and Kuroo would have never in a million years expect to happen to them. To Bokuto, yes. To Lev, yes. To Hinata, yes. But to them, no. Tsukishima is now nicer, only a tiny bit, to strangers on the street. Who knows which of them are witches, or maybe even vampires and werewolves. He’s grateful that he has Kuroo by his side. His favorite person in the world, always right beside him. A little part of Kuroo is honestly glad this happened. He met little Tsukishima. His Tsukishima. His moon. The light of his life. And they will never tell another living soul about what happened, mainly since no one will believe them. But that’s okay, it’s better if it just stays between them. A memory that they can look back on, to laugh at and still be somewhat shocked about. Maybe a day will come when they think it was all a dream.

Just not anytime soon.

Kuroo will forever treasure the picture he has of little Tsukishima laughing, watching _Tom & Jerry_ with strawberry ice cream on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading & I hope it was to your liking! ^_^ It took a while for me to complete this fic, but I'm glad I got to finish it & share it w/ you all. KuroTsuki has my heart now & it's a blessing. Also, THANK YOU everyone from the gc (Angst Gang & The Legs). Y'all have been incredibly inspirational! Again, thank you sm for reading! ❤
> 
> The incantations the magicians say are actually the spells Evy reads from The Mummy (1999) cus it's my #1 fav movie.
> 
> Here’s my [Twitter](http://www.twitter.com/_theglasscastle/) to cry about HQ or BNHA


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